Gunnar Read online

  LED lights flared bright and my spine prickled. We weren’t alone. A man and woman waited to greet us arm in arm. He was just as huge as Gunnar was with broad shoulders and well-muscled biceps and forearms. His t-shirt stretched taut over a massive chest. He kept a protective hand on the woman’s back. She was blonde with kind eyes that shone as she looked up at her man. She was also heavily pregnant.

  Another woman came rushing through another passageway to the left of us. She was short, with brown hair pulled into a ponytail. She wore green hospital scrubs and wiped her hands on a towel as she rushed past the other couple.

  “Gunnar!” she gushed. “My God, let me look at you!”

  Gunnar went into her waiting arms. As she hugged him, she looked over his shoulder at me, her wide brown eyes twinkling with tears.

  “Molly,” he said. “This is Jett. She’s hurt. One of Able’s wolves took a bite out of her arm. It’s bad.”

  I tried to play it off, but my legs turned to rubber as I stood there. Molly rushed forward and slid her arm around my waist. “Whoa,” she said. “I’ve got you. Come on. Let’s see how bad is.”

  Gunnar was at my side. This time, I didn’t have the strength to protest when he swept me off my feet. He followed Molly out of the main cavern, down a passageway, and into a smaller cave. I marveled at this one. Well-lit with strings of LED lights on the floor and ceilings, it had four hospital beds and shelving with medical supplies. Except for the cave walls, it could be a real doctor’s office.

  Molly made quick work of examining me. She cleaned the wound and hooked me up to an IV “You’re strong,” she said, smiling. “And probably pretty brave. And this looks worse than it is. It’ll scar something awful, but it’s superficial. You hear me, Gunnar? I’ll clean it, stitch it, and I think maybe a course of antibiotics wouldn’t go to waste. You did good. You got her here in time. Understand?”

  I hadn’t noticed, but Gunnar’s eyes had stayed silver since we came into the cave. Now, they dimmed, turning to their normal blue. It appeared this Molly knew him well indeed.

  I reached out and took Gunnar’s hand. “It’s okay,” I said. “I’m going to be okay. And so are you. Now go catch up with your friends. I have a feeling everyone’s got a lot of questions.”

  “She’s right,” Molly said. She put a light hand on Gunnar’s arm and shot me a wink. “And I suppose you have plenty of questions yourself. I’ll answer the first one and the only one that matters, Jett. You’re home now. And you’re among friends.”

  Relief flooded through me. It was that and the loss of blood. I sank back against the pillows and closed my eyes, feeling safe for the first time in years.

  Twenty-Nine

  Gunnar

  Anyone who didn’t know me might think I had more tiger inside of me than wolf. I paced outside the medical cavern. Liam and Mac barred my entry. If I wasn’t confident Molly could take care of Jett, even they wouldn’t be strong enough to stop me. As it was, I had the urge to rip their knowing smiles from their faces. At the same time, I’d never been more glad to see two people in my life.

  Finally, Molly emerged. She put a hand on Liam’s shoulder. He and Mac moved to let her through. Her bloodstained scrubs sent a spear of terror through me, but her soft smile kept me from losing it.

  “She’s going to be all right,” Molly said. “You got her to me in time.”

  I deflated with relief. As the weight of my fear left me, my legs went. I staggered back, gripping the wall for support. I sank down, hands over my face. Liam and Mac came to me.

  “Come on,” Mac said. “We’ve got a lot to talk about.”

  “Later,” I said. “I need to be with Jett.”

  “It’s okay,” Molly said. She squatted down so we were eye to eye. Her brow furrowed with worry as she touched my cheek then pulled my shirt away.

  “I’m fine,” I said. “It’s already starting to heal.”

  “Hmm. You still need stitching. That’s a wolf bite. You know damn well you’d have been better off with just a simple gunshot, Gunnar. Let me do my job.”

  “Later,” I said again. “I mean it. I’m okay.”

  “And so is your Jett. She’s something fierce, all right. I think I’m going to like her. But, she needs rest and no more excitement for the next twenty-four hours or so. I’m still a little worried about infection, but it’s nothing I won’t be able to tackle. You did good, Gunnar. You protected your mate.”

  Her eyes twinkled with mischief as she patted my shoulder. Liam held a hand out to her. She grasped it and rose to her feet. I ran a hard hand over my jaw and did the same.

  “I promise,” Molly said. “The minute her eyelids so much as flutter, I’ll come get you. You’ll be the first face she sees when she wakes up. Don’t be surprised if that takes a while. She looks like she hasn’t had a decent night’s sleep in years.”

  “She hasn’t,” I said, my tone solemn. “She’s been on the run, living in tunnels. She’s lost…”

  Molly put a hand on my chest. “She’s safe, Gunnar. So are you.” Molly’s eyes misted with tears. I realized she’d been running on her own adrenaline since the minute I got back. I’d been so caught up with worry for Jett, I hadn’t stopped to consider how much Molly and the others might have worried about me.

  Molly gave a choked cry. I pulled her to me and hugged her. “It’s okay, Moll. I’m okay. I’m back.”

  She snorted hard, ruining my shirt. Liam had a gentle hand on her back. His wolf eyes went gold.

  “Don’t you ever do that again,” Molly said. She ran a sleeve under her eyes and stepped back into Liam’s arms. “You scared the hell out of me.”

  “I’ll try not to,” I said.

  “Go, shoo,” she said, gesturing. “You boys have a lot of catching up to do and decisions to make. I’ll watch over Jett. Promise.”

  “Thanks,” said. I hugged Molly again. Then, I locked eyes with Liam over her head. She was right. We had a lot to talk about.

  The three of us went into the main rotunda. It was quiet there for now. Payne and Jagger were missing. I was almost afraid to ask where they were. When I turned to Mac and Liam, I found I didn’t quite know where to start.

  “God,” Mac said. “It’s good to have you back, man.” He came to me, slapping me on the back as we embraced. “We thought for sure you were dead until...Jagger.”

  Liam put a hand on Mac’s shoulder. A quick look passed between them. There was something they weren’t telling me. I didn’t like it one bit. For now though, I knew there was something bigger at stake.

  “I almost killed him,” I said, starting at the most important part. “I had Able in my sights. He was wounded...bad. He tried to control me, but he couldn’t. I think that’s the secret he’s trying to hide from the rest of the Pack. He’s so old. I’ve never seen an Alpha still in control who’s as old as he is. I pushed back. He couldn’t break me. I swear to God I was about to break him. I had to let go. I had to go after Jett.”

  I sat on a boulder, resting my hands on my knees.

  “It’s okay,” Liam said. I hadn’t realized until just that moment how much I needed one of them to say that. “We’re the last two people you have to explain or justify the choice you made. Because there was no choice. Jett’s your mate. She would have died if you hadn’t gone to her.”

  Nodding, I threaded my hands through my hair, half wanting to tear it out. “He can be beaten though. If we can get him alone again, I swear it. It’s why we’re such a threat to him. He kills Alphas because he knows he can’t control them in the same way as the betas. We’re a threat. And it’s also why he knew I’d be no good to him if he did fully subjugate me. I think it would have turned my mind to mush. He wanted my intel about the rest of you and where we’re hiding. He didn’t get it though. I swear to you. My Alpha’s too strong. I would have died before telling him anything or leading the Pack here.”

  “That was never a concern,” Mac said. He had a hand on my shoulder. “Not once.”

>   “Where’s Payne?” I asked.

  “Gone,” Liam answered abruptly. “Ever since Birch Haven, he’s been AWOL a lot. He won’t admit it, but being that close to Valent churned up some stuff in him. So, he’s been doing a lot of recon. He’s run some friends to the border and back. I don’t think he’s spent the night in the caves once since you...went missing.”

  I sat back. “I get it,” I said. “You think he doesn’t trust himself?”

  Mac sighed and sat on another bolder a few feet from me. “I think he’s just trying to work some shit out. We’ve given him some space. After everything with Jagger...the last thing I wanna do is mess with his head.”

  “He’s no better?” I asked. Jagger had been damn near catatonic since losing his mate, Keara over a year ago. It took a minute for me to let that settle in. I now understood how devastating that had to have been for him. I couldn’t even bring myself to think about how I’d feel if something really had happened to Jett. It’s a wonder he was still alive. I’d been gone so long. Six long months.

  A silence fell between us. There was something Mac and Liam didn’t want to tell me. I closed my eyes and let out a hard breath. “Don’t tell me,” I said. We’d worried for months that Jagger might actually try to take his own life. His despair over losing Keara seemed to have physical weight. It crushed him, suspending him in some unreachable place between his wolf and the man he once was. Molly had been the only one with true hope where Jagger was concerned.

  “He’s better in a sense,” Liam said. “You should go see him. He took your loss pretty hard too.”

  “You didn’t lose me,” I rose. I put my hand out, clasping it with Liam’s. “I’m too fucking stubborn for that. But why didn’t you guys warn me what it would be like?”

  Liam and I broke. Mac stood there dumbfounded, then the two of them burst into laughter. “You mean Jett? Man, there’s no way words would have been enough for that. How the hell did you find her after everything you went through?”

  I told them a little about what it was like in Camp Hell. The deepest truth was something no man could understand unless he’d lived it. I think Mac and Liam got that. They didn’t pry. But, the part I did want to share, I did with a huge smile on my face.

  “She was the one who busted me out. She’s from Birch Haven. When she wakes up, she’s going to have a ton of questions. There’s a girl in particular she’s been trying to find. Jett is...well...when you get the chance to get to know her, you’ll see what I mean.”

  “We already do, brother,” Liam said. “We can see it in your eyes. She was meant for you. Which means she’s going to be something pretty special. And you know it means we’ll protect her with our lives too if it comes to it.”

  My throat clogged with emotion. I’d been alone so long, I’d almost forgotten what it was like to have men I could count on. It made my heart ache that much more for Jagger.

  And then, as if I’d conjured him, he appeared at the cavern entrance standing tall and stoic, his face hard and his eyes dark.

  “Jagger,” I whispered. His body was ravaged with new scars cutting a web-like pattern across his chest. Only wolf claws did that. The skin around his wrists was rough and calloused where he’d worn his own dragonsteel chains. In his case, we’d done it to protect him. Having spent months in them myself as a prisoner, I knew Jagger wouldn’t have seen much of a difference.

  Jagger’s eyes flicked to Mac and Liam. He didn’t say a word. He straightened his back and entered the cavern. Pain etched his face. Losing Keara had left him gutted, hollowed out. But today, he was on his feet. My heart flooded with a dozen emotions as he came to me.

  “It’s good to see you,” I said. I put a hand on his shoulder. He tensed up, but didn’t pull away. I took his hand, clasping it like I’d just done with Liam. His eyes darted back and forth over mine. His lips pursed, but he didn’t say anything. It was as if the words were still trapped inside. The agony of his heart was written in the deep lines near his eyes and his gaunt cheeks.

  “It’s okay,” I said, letting him go. “I’m okay.”

  His nostrils flared and he gave me a slight nod, but that was all he could muster. Give it time, I thought. He’s come this far.

  Jagger stepped away and jerked his chin toward Mac and Liam. “We’ll take care of it,” Liam said. Jagger dropped his head and walked back out of the cavern.

  For a moment, I couldn’t breathe. I knew how big a step that was for Jagger to make. I ran a hand over my jaw. “Wow,” was all I could find to say. “He’s...that was…”

  “Progress,” Mac finished. “It was. But there’s something you need to know. Follow us.”

  When I shot a questioning look at Liam, he merely turned and followed Mac out. Heart pounding with new fear, I fell in step behind them. They led me deeper into the caves. Before I left, we’d started clearing out new caverns. After taking out the Shadow Springs general, we had more and more refugees to house. It unsettled me that most of these new caverns were empty. I wasn’t sure if that was good or bad news. We came to the last one before the passageway was blocked. My inner wolf pricked as a familiar scent filled my head.

  No. It couldn’t be!

  I practically shoved Mac and Liam out of the way. My step faltered as I burst into the cavern. Bright eyes glinted, adjusting to the light. There, against the wall sitting on a rocky ledge was Finn. He greeted me with a broad smile and a choked cry as he realized it was me.

  “Gunnar!” Finn leaped to his feet and came to me. He launched himself at me. Slapping his back, I hugged him. He was thin and frail, but so much stronger than the last time I saw him. I hadn’t dared to hope. My heart soared with relief.

  “How?” I asked, pulling him back by the shoulders. My face split into a wide grin as I looked over his shoulder. Rackham and Jones sat against the wall. They were more cautious, preferring to watch Finn with me. I understood. We’d never been close like Finn and me. And I didn’t know what horrors befell them after I broke free.

  “It was a fucking miracle is what,” Finn said. “Oh, we all caught holy hell after you left. But, the guards went nuts. The Alpha came down hard on ‘em. But then he left to find you. He gave orders to either kill or subjugate all three of us. Maestro’s choice.” Finn’s voice cracked on the name.

  “It’s okay,” I said, still gripping his shoulders. I met him eye to eye. “Listen to me, Finn. He’s gone. You hear me, man? Maestro’s dead. It’s a long fucking story, but I tore him to bits and watched him die. He’s gone for good.”

  A single tear fell down Finn’s cheek. For an instant, I wanted the ground to open up and swallow me. It was my fault. These men had been punished for information about me they didn’t have. He wasn’t Maestro to me anymore. He was Sutter. It tore at me to think any action he took against Finn and the others was made worse because of me.

  “You sure?” This from Rackham.

  “I’m sure. He’s dead.” I lifted my shirt to show them the now healing wound I bore from Sutter’s bite. “Gave me this as a parting gift. But he’s gone.”

  “Thank you,” Finn said. He stepped out of my grip, his eyes glinting with tears. “All of you. If that crazy motherfucker hadn’t come when he did, they were going to kill us. That’s if we were lucky. I still don’t know how he did it. Gunnar, you should have seen him. Dude came down like an avalanche, all silver-eyed fury. He took out three guards in seconds. They threw everything they had at him, tore him to bits, but he just kept on coming. I’ll never forget it.”

  My head swirled with Finn’s words. I looked back at Mac and Liam. Understanding slammed into place. The motherfucker in question was Jagger. I’d just seen the new scars over his body.

  “We’ll catch up later,” I said. “I gotta check in on my girl. You have everything you need here?”

  Jones and Rackham nodded. Finn stepped back and joined them. “This is heaven,” Finn answered. “Sweet, sweet heaven. You know, I thought you were crazy. I thought those were fever dreams you
had, talkin’ about her jet-black hair and luscious tits.”

  A protective growl escaped from me. It earned me a nervous laugh and Finn’s hands thrown up in surrender. But, he winked and smiled. “You go to her,” he said. “And tell her thank you. I know she had a part in this.”

  “I will,” I said, reaching to shake Finn’s hand again. “I’ll be back. Promise.”

  Finn shook his head and disbelief. The three of them looked awful, but they were whole. Time might just bring them back all the way.

  I left the cavern with Mac and Liam. New questions swirled in my mind. As we made our way back toward the infirmary, Liam started to answer them.

  “Payne’s the one who figured out where they’d taken you. It’s one of the reasons he’s spent so much time away. He’s been strengthening our contacts, gathering intel. He got word of the prison camp. It wasn’t confirmed, but he heard a rumor there was a prisoner the Alpha had taken a special interest in. Someone mentioned the tattoo on your chest and we figured we were on to something. We were starting to hash out a rescue plan. Then Jagger…”

  “He just took off,” Mac picked up the story. “Molly was the one who put it together where he was going. She’d seen some signs that troubled her. Gunnar, I don’t think Jagger ever meant to come back. He was on a suicide mission.”

  I stopped and leaned hard against the cave wall. “Christ. Do you realize how close he probably came to getting his wish? It had to be dumb luck and brute strength on his side. That’s all.”

  “Obviously, you were already gone when he got there. He could have left, but he didn’t. He set those men free and brought them back. Or rather, they dragged him back here. Molly almost didn’t get to him in time. She won’t admit it, but he begged her to let him die. We all heard it. He hasn’t talked since.”